But then I pause when I see a man walking towards me.
What is he doing here? “Dad? Did you order something? I can go grab it for you—” My thumb jerks over my shoulder and freezes.
Except.
It’s not him.
When he looks up at me, his face pales.
Half of it.
The other half is scarred and puckered, pulling at the corner of his mouth and tightening around his eyes.
What the fuck?
“No.” His quiet word hangs in mist before he turns abruptly and strides back to his black SUV.
“Wait!” I rush after him, but he’s too fast, slamming his door shut.
My arm drops to my side watching the car peel out of the parking lot.
Who was that? Why did he look so much like—
Was that Uncle Cade?
Chapter 36
Val
I notice his expressionthe moment he comes inside.
Walking away from the customer I was mid-sentence with, I rush over to Sawyer.
“What’s the matter?” I clasp his elbows, making him meet my eyes.
Chewing on his bottom lip, his brows furrow. “I don’t know. There was a guy outside I thought was my dad. But it wasn’t. He had these scars—” His hand comes up in a claw shape, waving over his own face. “I could haveswornit was Dad.”
An icy stone drops in my stomach. There’s only one person I know that is the spitting image of Mason McCullough.“Cade.”
Sawyer nods. “I think so.”
“What did he say? Is he still here?” I glance through the windows towards the spare parking lot.
“Nothing, really. And he already left. So weird.” He shakes his head, hoisting his bag.
It is strange.
“Go on upstairs, I’ll be there soon.” I give his butt a soft pat of encouragement, then head back to the counter to finish ringing up the poor customer who’s standing there watching us.
By the time I finish closing up, Sawyer has his game system plugged into my small TV.
His confused expression earlier is a firm frown now.
Tousling his hair, I hand him a bottle of water and land on the couch next to him. “Get a hold of Scott?” Maybe that will help him forget about Cade?
“Yea, but he said he can’t get on tonight, some big last minute Christmas Eve party.” He lets out a long exhale, wrapping his arm behind my shoulders to pull me closer. “He did say tomorrow night for sure, though.”
“Is he still being weird? I can have a talk with him if he is.” I know how much Sawyer enjoys the little bit of time he gets to spend with my brother.
